Fasteners such as nails, screws, bolts and the like are well known in the art, and may be used in a variety of applications, including for attaching brackets and other items to a substrate. One exemplary fastener and application for its use is a nail or pin useful to attach a bracket to a substrate such as a wall, ceiling, or other surface. A hammer or an automated driving tool such as a pneumatic or powder actuated tool may be used to drive the nail. For convenience, brackets may be provided with a fastener that is suitable for use with the bracket. For an even greater level of convenience, a holder may be provided that retains the fastener to the bracket.
For example, a so-called “top hat” or “eyelet” holder is known for retaining a fastener within a bracket passage. Typical top hat holders have a hollow tube portion for frictionally engaging the insertion tip of a fastener shaft, and a lowermost annular rim that is larger in size than the bracket passage. The annular rim prevents the holder from passing through the bracket passage and therefore prevents the top hat with the fastener held therein from separating from the bracket. When the bracket is to be installed, the bracket is placed onto a substrate with the top hat annular rim laying generally flat on the substrate so that the fastener extends upward for driving into the substrate through the bracket passage. When the fastener head is struck by a tool, the fastener head penetrates through the bottom of the top hat holder and into the substrate.
Although such holders are known, they leave several problems and needs unresolved. For example, fasteners held to a bracket by a top hat holder are not held in a stationary position, but instead are free to move some distance in the vertical and horizontal directions. As a result, the fastener is not held stable relative to the bracket. When a bracket is to be attached to a surface, the fastener must be manually manipulated and held stable in a desired position. This typically requires a user to dedicate a hand to holding the fastener. A user is thus left with only one hand to operate the driving tool. In some circumstances, such as installation of a bracket onto an overhead surface like a ceiling, this may be difficult. One-handed operation would be preferred. Further, when installing a bracket on a surface that is not easily accessed, such as a ceiling, there is a chance that the user will not position the fastener at a 90° angle to the surface. In this case the fastener may be driven into the surface at a less than desirable angle which can result in a substantially weakened holding force, and may even result in a bent or otherwise damaged fastener.
When using brackets and fasteners with automated driving tools such as a driving tool, it is also known to use a fastener positioner for positioning the fastener head in the tool barrel. For example, a pliable ring with outward extending fingers may be positioned on the fastener shaft. The fingers of the ring engage the wall of a tool barrel when the fastener is inserted therein to help to center the fastener head within the barrel. Often, a ring such as this is used in combination with a holder such as a top hat.
Known positioner rings fail to solve several problems in the art. For example, when used with a top hat or other holder, the collar is usually attached to the fastener separate from the holder. This results in a two-step preparation process that is relatively costly and time consuming. Additionally, different tools may have different barrel diameters. Different sized rings are required for different sized tool barrels. Also, the angle of incidence of the fastener into the substrate can be critical to the fastening of a bracket. The angle of incidence depends to a large degree on the angle at which the fastener is oriented in the tool barrel. Known positioner rings are generally limited in length and are free to slide along the shaft of a fastener. As a result, the angle of orientation of the fastener to the driving tool may vary from the desired. Accordingly, many needs and problems remain unresolved in the art.